Tomatoes Prevent Sickness

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At a time when natural ingredients are being recognized for
their disease-preventing qualities, tomatoes are one of the
indisputable winners. Experts link their main
ingredient--lycopene--to the prevention of lung and
prostatecancer, digestive tract tumors, arteriosclerosis and heart
attacks.

A basic component of the so-called Mediterranean
diet, tomatoes were the focus of a research study published in the
Journal of the National Cancer Instituteof the United
States. The study demonstrated that those who consume significant
amounts of tomatoes and tomato-based products are less at-risk for
numerous types of cancer.

The report analyzed 72 earlier studies that had
examined the connections between tomato intake and cancer as well
as blood lycopene levels. This substance protects cells from
oxidants that typically cause cancer. Dr. Edward Giovannuci of
Harvard Medical School explained in his study that 57 of the 72
studies linked tomato intake with reduced risk of cancer.

In 35 of these studies, the connection was
sufficiently strong to be statistically significant. According to
Giovannuci, the data are most applicable to cancer of the prostate,
stomach and lungs.

Lycopene is an antioxidant of the carotenoid
family, which gives tomatoes their characteristic red color. By the
way, if you're not a tomato fan, lycopene is also found in smaller
amounts in watermelon,
red
grapefruitand guava.

Another study, published in the
American Journal of Epidemiology, established that higher
consumption of tomato sauce reduced the risk of heart attack. The
study group was led by Lenore Kohlmeier, professor of nutrition at
the University of North Carolina.

The scientists analyzed samples of fat from
1,379 people who had suffered heart attacks, comparing the samples
to those of people who had not had heart attacks. The conclusion
was that those whose samples showed higher concentrations of
lycopene had half the risk of suffering a heart condition.

For a long time doctors have been searching for
links between this salad celebrity and cancer. According to this
same report, lycopene deficiencies can lead to increased risk for
lung cancer.

Unlike other vegetables whose beneficial
properties are greater when raw, tomatoes are better cooked. The
heat during cooking helps free lycopene from the tomato's cell
walls. So canned tomatoes or those that have been through any kind
of cooking process increase lycopene concentrations.